A decision on what areas of the north-east will benefit as part of a £200 million fund to speed up rail times between Aberdeen and the central belt has been delayed, 14 years after the promise was first made.
The improvement options for the project were due to be finalised early this year but it has now emerged this work will not be completed until the end of 2022.
Transport Scotland has earmarked 2026 for completion of the overall project.
Proposals to revamp the Usan junction, the last single-track stretch on the East Coast line, were first unveiled in 2008 by the government.
The plans were revived in 2016 under £200m funding promised as part of the Aberdeen City Region Deal.
The upgrades could cut trips between the Granite City and the central belt by up to 24 minutes.
But concerns have been raised over the pace of progress, with transport chiefs yet to confirm exactly how the savings will be achieved.
‘Long overdue improvements’
Conservative MSP Liam Kerr said the SNP’s promise to improve the north-east’s rail infrastructure was “plucked out of thin air”.
He said: “If they were serious about enhancing the north-east’s rail infrastructure, it wouldn’t have taken them 14 years to decide what improvement options to select.
“It’s now time for SNP ministers to stop prioritising the likes of Glasgow and Edinburgh and finally give north-east commuters the long overdue improvements they deserve.”
In September last year, Finance Secretary Kate Forbes said the rail improvement project was “on course to conclude option selection” by early this year.
Transport Minister Jenny Gilruth has now confirmed the selection will not be completed until the end of 2022 – around a year later.
She said: “The package of enhancements identified via the option selection process is to be confirmed by Transport Scotland by the end of 2022, as part of its endorsement of the outline business cases for both this project and the related project to decarbonise the route.
“The package comprises signal enhancements, improvements to station approaches and specific capacity alternations to facilitate the mixed operation of faster and slower trains on the same route.”
In response to Mr Kerr, she added: “Mr Kerr should be welcoming this investment in transport for the north-east.
“It is simply bizarre that he cannot bring himself to acknowledge that this £200m of funding will deliver the promised additional capacity for both rail passengers and freight traffic by the end of 2026, in line with our commitment.”
Network Rail recently appointed contractor AECOM to carry out a £5 million package of work to assess a number of existing bridge structures including in Aberdeen, Aberdeenshire, Angus, Dundee and Perth.
In the past year, Network Rail and Siemens engineers have carried out ground investigation work across 72 miles of railway as part of the Aberdeen to central belt enhancement project.
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